Home Opener

Glad to see everyone getting excited about the team, whether you’re in favor of the lineup or not. For what it’s worth, today’s is the same as yesterday’s below. And yes, we will begin removing all of the comments from anyone who swears in their posts.

Meanwhile, with Jason Schmidt starting today, readers of the L.A. Times were treated to a very interesting article about him from Steve Henson.

Over at the Daily News, the front page of the paper has an article about Nettie Berkson, who will be attending her 50th home opener this year at Dodger Stadium. In a nutshell, this is what Dodger fans are all about. I hope that many of you make it out here today for the first game of the season and that the winning streak continues.

In the meantime, everyone in the front office will be extremely busy, looking to ensure that you have an awesome time at Dodger Stadium. The first employees showed up in the wee hours of the morning and most of our office was here by about 6:45. Let’s hope it all pays off at the end of the day.

Hi Frank – How are “things” going. Very well I hope. Winter has gone fast. I can’t imagine the excitement at Dodger Stadium today. I can follow the game as it is a day game. Excited about that. fliegel – I think ahead to playing the better teams too but have decided to take it one day at a time. I really think we can compete with them depending on our starting pitching. If that comes together as we expect, watch out. Looking for some more bats to spring to life today. GO DODGERS!!

My family, who lives in LA, was offered 4 opening-day tickets at the last minute but they area all working. I really thought about hopping a plane from Denver so I could take them…

Congrats to everyone who gets to be there today. You are truly envied. Let’s hope the Dodgers own the Rockies as badly as they did last season. (Dodgers in Denver next week for a 2-game series…I’m hoping they can do the same then, when I can actually see them in person.)

Since I spent the W/E, in the bay area. I went to Sec. 209,
and I asked everyone, for this “Hurley Dude”, Giiants Fan (Thats how he spells it)??.I had waited long enough, for Barry to launch one Plus he was going to buy me a beer.It was Sunday (7th) inning.??NO HURLEY..Typical

pat25rod – You’re getting all hot and bothered over nothing. Wouldn’t you be too embarrassed to show if you were a Giant fan with a roster that is getting older and older and paying magabucks to Bonds and Zito?

Harold, best bet for you and I (and puppyhead too) is to go to the market and grab any bun length hot dog with buns and then smother them in mustard, relish and chopped onions. It won’t be quite the same but it will do nonetheless. Don’t forget to use the indoor George Foreman grill to make them as authentic as possible. Then turn on the game and enjoy! BTW… you ARE watching the game today, right? : )

Can the Wilson Betemit experiment really be given a chance if he’s removed from the lineup with every left handed pitcher that faces us? I mean really… how much worse than Martinez is Betemit, especially given the fact that he will hit for more power over the course of the season. Oh, and there really is something to be said for batting in the number eight hole and not getting any pitches to hit with the pitcher following. Wilson has never been a number eight hitter before…

What a quandary this team has before them. Furcal will be coming off the DL soon and who will be the “inevitable” first key injury of the year? We all know that somebody will get hurt, but for someone like James Loney and Matt Kemp/Andre Ethier, the key injuries that most would welcome involve the names Garciaparra and Gonzalez. It’s tough love baby… but that’s the way it’s going to have to go down if these younger players are ever going to be given a shot at playing every day.

Also, Juan Pierre is pressing as a leadoff hitter. Furcal needs to return quickly to take this pressure off of him. Pierre feels he’s got something to prove and right now he’s trying way too hard. He’d be good in the number eight hole… but we all know THAT won’t happen.

I really hope that Grady is paying full attention to how well Russell Martin is filling in as a number two hitter. There were many of us last year who felt this was his best slot in the lineup and we’re being rewarded so far with some excellent play from Russell. He’s got the eye of a ten-year veteran at the plate… very patient, selective and knows when to go the other way with the pitch. He’ll also see a lot more pitches to drive in this slot… and with that comes an 18 to 23 homer season. Expect his power output to increase this season… but not if he’s placed back in the eight hole…

“Anything like hoping for injuries to dodger players like Nomar and Gonzo so prospects who maybe good can play is disgusting. Im my opinion.”

When I say “…injuries that most would welcome”, I’m specifically talking about those who are calling for Loney and Kemp/Ethier to be playing every day. In my opinion, injuries coming to Garciaparra and Gonzalez are the only way this is going to happen. I would never “welcome” this myself, but the mood of this blog during the past two weeks would suggest that these injuries would be welcomed by many. Yes, it’s disgusting… more accurately though it’s called “tough love” because many of these so-called “Dodger Fans” are misplaced in their desire to have the younger prospects play. That was my point… not that I personally would welcome it…

Kevin I agree with your Russell Martin comments. He is definitely patient at the plate, with good coverage, and like LoDuca appears to not worry about a two strike count. That allows the leadoff hitter ample opportunity to steal. Martin, contrary to Joe Morgan’s assessment, has good speed for a catcher. GO DODGERS!!

hi euhlman, sorry about that fliegel, couldn’t pass that one up. I am really feeling well lately, it’s been 3 months and I feel good, going to make that 70″s club we talked about, need 13 years, but I shall be there. played golf last friday, hit some shots to make me go back this week to try again.
this year is going to be our year, our 35 to 40 man team is going to do it. I look forward to the vet’s playing better and Loney, LaRoche, Abreu, and Meloan coming up and helping Martin,Kemp, and Ethier help our older guys.

hope I can see todays game on T.V. ready to go, looking for another 10 runs today.

the only thing to hope for in regards to nomar/gonzo etc. is that Grady will recognize when and if they have outlived their usefulness as everyday players and will act accordingly. If they remain productive everyone will be rooting for them to stay healthy.

Glad to hear all is going well Frank. I have 15 to make the 70 club. Think I can do it. Have been blessed with wonderful health. Have not spent a day in a hospital since I was born in 1941. Big game today. I too look for the youngsters to lend a hand again this year. I think Grady will give Nomar, Kent and Gonzo adequate rest as he did with JD last year. GO DODGERS!!

Frank… good to have you back! And it looks like you have plenty of golf left in you… I heard that a 102 year old woman hit her first hole in one over the weekend with the “big-dog”. She’s sure to make the late-night show circuit this week…

I agree for the most part about Russell Martin really coming around and stepping up. Although I still miss Lo Duca, Martin makes it much easier. But I don’t know if I can say he hits like a 10 year veteran. There’s definitely a difference between how he and Kent approach the plate. And for those of you that couldn’t watch the game (I’m in the San Francisco Bay area, so I actually got to watch this past series), Russell Martin struck out swinging at a ball that hit him on his triceps. He’s definitely ahead of the game at his age, and I’m excited to know that he can only get better.

Two outs in the top of the first, and I can only watch it on the radio (although I didn’t want to see that HR).

I don’t think any real fan wants Nomar or Gonzo to get injured.

But, all teams have injuries, and if I had to pick guys to be injured, it would be the guys where we have replacements that we have a lot of confidence in. That’s better than an injury to Furcal, who even with good replacements for the first week has created a hole in the offense, or an injury to Martin, which would be devastating.

Also, we all know there will be injuries, and espescially with the older guys who have had injury problems in the past. And let’s face it, Ned has build the team knowing that this is likely to happen. We have made a point to be ready with some good rookies who can play if our front line guys get injured. We saw it last year, and there will probably be similar events this year.

But I think all fans hope Nomar and Gonzo are healthy and productive all season long.

man I say beer and Schmidt hits a homerun, word of the day is beer.
I too don’t want any injuries to anyone, but as last years shows, and ned says the team is 35 to 40 players, because it is a long season and players do get hurt.

Andre Ethier is coming in for Kemp. Kemp went back to the wall and tried to catch the drive off of Baker’s bat. He first started in on the ball but might have had a better play on it if he’d gone back for it first. It doesn’t look too serious for Kemp. Just being cautious I feel.

Frank I’m having some trouble following the game. I am following it on SI.COM and is quite current in its updates. However, the first annoyance is that the picture of Jason Schmidt has him wearing a Giant cap. Not an annoynace, but a distraction, every now and then to the right of the game chart is a picture of some of the swim suit issue girls. There it’s gone. Back to the game. Jason is having some trouble. Bats need to come alive today. GO DODGERS!!

The sky is real difficult in right field today. On a couple of plays Kemp really had to work to catch them. I don’t know why his glasses were on his cap when that ball was hit. Sounds like a team fine for Kemp. If you have glasses in the outfield, why do they stay on top of the cap??? Is it just to look cool??? Outfielders in the past would have those lenses down on the crack of the bat if it was hit their way.

well maybe not. If Kemp goes on the DL that opens a spot for Furcal so the Dodgers could keep Valdez. Keeping 3 shortstops doesnt make any sense but everything management has done so far this year hasn’t made much sense either.

Days like today really show the value of depth and youth. If Kemp and Schmidt are out for any length of time, we have solid replacements ready to step in. Bills might get some starts, and Ethier is likely to start daily as well.

“On this day in 1981, Opening Day at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers to play the Houston Astros and Jerry Reuss to do the pitching. Only Reuss had a bad ankle and couldn’t start. So the Dodgers gave the ball to a left-hander by the name of Fernando Valenzuela. He shut out the Astros two to nothing, and that was the beginning of Fernando-Mania. Let’s go back to this one.”

I miss Raffy. What the **** was Lieberthal doing popping up a 3-1 pitch? It’s just unacceptable in that situation. If only Raffy was in that lead off spot i think we win the game… he wasnt so who knows…
Schmidt is going to be interesting this year, but i think im very happy to have him on the team. I’m thrilled Andre got a hit– he just hits the ball hard every time, other than his base hit, which just goes to show why baseball is such a great sport. He’s a great player.. Thinking about our IF/OF, we should have catcher, corner OF spots, 1b, 2b locked up for 10 + years. If La Roche comes around all the better. We really have an amazing ******* farm system though it gets me excited– just the prospect, the potential, of having such a consistent, stable team made up of youngsters gives me the goose bumps. Who knows how it all plays out, but the last 10 years have been anything but predictable or reliable from a fan’s rallying point of view…

A frustrating loss to say the least. It seems that the Dodgers “Left their (bats) in San Francisco”.

I will try to clarify a few things for those of you who could only listen or watch on the internet.

Kemp struggled with a couple of fly balls because the wind was swirling quite a bit at the stadium today. He did take a step in on Baker’s drive to right. He really hit the wall hard and I anticipate that he will go on the DL. In all honesty, he really should have made that catch without crashing into the wall.

As for Schmidt, he was not sharp at all. His speed was WAY down for a so-called power pitcher. He is saying that his injured hamstring was due to dehydration and that he will not miss his next start – Good news, indeed.

Hendrickson was outstanding today but, in all due respect, Rudy Seanez was awful. I will be surprised if he is still on the active roster by mid May.

Beimel finally got called for a balk (I was wondering when he would). To an umpire who is not familiar with his move, it is easy to see how this could happen. Unfortunately, that balk led to a run scored.

The 3-1 pitch the Lieberthal popped up (foul) appeared to be ball four (up and in), but I may be wrong. In my opinion, as poorly as Fuentes was pitching, he should have taken it no matter what. The game was pretty much out of reach by then, but he was the potential tying run. His at bat really surprised me for his time in the Bigs.

All of this is just my perspective (and my opinion).

Bottom line is that we just won four straight, and I will take four out of five any day.

GO DODGERS!

PS: I will be away on business for a week, so y’all mind the fort and behave yourselves.

PPS: The Dodger Dogs were delicious Harold! Also, the pre-game festivities were outstanding. It’s GREAT to be a Dodger fan!

A real good explanation Kevin, Penny pitched on Friday, that would be three days rest. Tomko goes tomorrow night so Penny can go the full four days of rest and pitch Wednesday. Also, I may be in the minority but I was there today and aside from the normal traffic woes that come with an opening day I thought the new parking reconfiguration worked well, at least from the Golden State Lot. I got off the 5 at 12:05, went up Stadium Way, hit awful but yet normal traffic, the ‘Disneyland’ style parking employees flagged me to my spot and I got to my seat by 12:40. When the game ended we went back to the car, got in a little traffic going out of Stadium Way and it took about 10 minutes to get back to the 5. All in all not a disaster at least from my perspective and actually better than past Opening Days, in 2005 I sat in the car for 90 minutes circling the Stadium in awful standstill traffic trying to get a parking spot. I’ll be back out there tomorrow night rooting for the Blue!

Schmidt is now an 87-90 mph pitcher i think. I thought his velocity actually looked a little better than it did in his first start where he never got it above 88, with a lot at 86-85. Today he was consistently hitting 87 and up. He is still a good strikeout pitcher though, which is what is so interesting about him. I think he becomes like Maddux- obviously thats the ideal situation, but i see it in him. I guess with two less pitches also.

Worst opening day ever – after going to 35 straight! We got to the stadium the earlyist ever – 10:50 A.M. For 35 years, I have used the “Academy Road” entrance with no problems. We got off the 5, as usual, at Broadway. It took 2 hours to get from Salono to the gate – and we “cheated” by cutting in at the last minute! All the new plan did was transfer the heavy traffic from inside the stadium to outside the venue! Once inside the gates, there was no traffic. Our KFWB “Suite” seats were somehow missing at the party, the whole thing became a disaster. The flyover before the national anthem – with no warning? $15 to park – Angels still at $8? The longest concession and restroom lines in history! The parking staff “More than doubled”? We saw allmost no one. Every fan I spoke to agreed. If the current parking plan stands, they will have to double the amount entry gates. When we left our handicapped parking, the Dodgers had allowed people to “Abandon” thier cars throuout the inner circle lanes – Double parked cars, even in the center lanes. Now we were trapped and could not get out! What a joke! I went to The Angel opener Monday Night, got there 1 hour before the game, and I was at my seat in a half hour. Dodgers: I want four inner reserve seats to a Saturday game please! This is the least you can do. McCourt, Please Help Us!!

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